Device for packing objects in a bag

ABSTRACT

The invention provides an improved device for packing objects in a bag, in which the objects are pushed through a sleeve to come into a bag that is suspended below said sleeve. The improvement of the invention consists in that a means for supporting the open end of a bag is moved upwards to surround said sleeve after which it is moved downwards again. Simultaneously with this descending movement of the bag the object is pushed out of the sleeve. As a result of the invention damage or disengagement from its supporting means of the bag as well as air enclosures between the object and the bottom of the bag are avoided.

United States Patent [191 Mosterd n 1] 3,803,799 [451' Apr. 16, 1974 DEVICE FOR PACKING OBJECTS IN A BAG [76] Inventor: Jacob Hendrik Mosterd,

En-Merkenbureau De Wit N. V. 1 l, Surenomestraat, Barneveld, Netherlands Filed: Sept. 11, 1972 Appl. No.: 287,829

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data Sept. 10, 1971 Netherlands 7112520 U.S. Cl 53/187, 53/358, 53/260 Int. Cl 1365b 43/26, B65b 39/06 Field of Search... 53/187, 188, 190, 258,

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,601,951 8/1971 Bargeletal ..53/247X 8/1962 Helm et al. 53/188 X 7/1960 Baxter 53/187 X Primary ExaminerTravis S. McGehee Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Larson, Taylor & Hinds 57 ABSTRACT The invention provides an improved device for packing objects in a bag, in which the objects are pushed through a sleeve to come into a bag that is suspended below said sleeve. The improvement of the invention consists in that a means for supporting the open end of a bag is moved upwards to surround said sleeve after which it is moved downwards again. Simultaneously with this descendingmovement of the bag the object is pushed out of the sleeve. As a result of the invention damage or disengagement from its supporting means of the bag as well as air enclosures between the object and the bottom of the bag are avoided.

8 Claims, 13 Drawing Figures DEVICE FOR PACKING OBJECTS IN A BAG It is known to pack objects by moving or pushing them through a sleeve having at its lower side a bag. Dependent on the shape of the objects difficulties may occur when the shape of the objects is not always the same. If for instance the object is a chicken that has to be put into a bag it is possible that a leg will tear the bag. Also it occurs that the object together with the bag wall forms a seal causing an air enclosure above the bottom of the bag. If then the object is pushed furtheron'the risk exists that the bag will be torn from its support. I

It is a main object of the invention to avoid these difficulties. Accordingly, the invention provides a device for packing objects, provided with a sleeve, means for pushing said object through said sleeve, and supporting FIG. 8 shows a section of a further detail in a position corresponding with that of FIG. 2;

FIG. '9 shows the detail of FIG. 8 in a different posi tion;

FIG. is a section along the line X-X of FIG. 8;

FIG. ll is a plane view of the bag-holder which is present at the lower side of the apparatus of FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 12 corresponds with FIG. 11 but shows another position-of the bag-holder; and

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing schematically the form of the several control guides mounted along the conmeans for a bag, characterized in that said supporting means is movably mounted from a first position in which a bag supported by the supporting means is positioned below said sleeve into a second position in which thesaid bag surrounds at least the lower portion of said sleeve, and in that control means are present for moving said supporting means from the said first position into the said second position and vice versa.

Because when applying the invention it-is possible to move the bag and the object simultaneously the object is already at the moment it leaves the sleeve in contact with the bottom of the bag, hardly any motion of the object with respect to the bag occurs, so that tearing or air enclosures are'avoided. i

' In order to controlledly move the object through the sleeve a further improvement of the invention consists in that a pushing means is present that'is vertically movable in said sleeve, which means is adapted to engage an object in said sleeve, and second control means for moving said pushing means up and down. In this instance it is preferred that the first and second control means are adapted to movesimultaneously the said pushing means and the said supporting means downwards. 3

'. 15 which are rotatably mounted on said rods by means An embodiment of the invention which has the additional advantage that no power means except a means for driving a conveyor are necessary, consists in that said sleeve and said supporting means are mounted on a frame supported by a conveyor means adapted to move along a predetermined track and inlthat said control means consists of a guide stationarily mounted along saidtrack and a roller bearing on said guide, which roller is connected to said supporting meansj The above and further features of the invention will be explained in the following description, that refers 'to the'accompanying drawings, in which FIG. 1 is a front view of a device according to the in vention; V i FIG. 2 is a side view of the device according to FIG. 1;

, FIG. 7 shows a detailin the position or Pro. 6;

each are mounted freely rotatable on a shaft 3, whichshaft 3is fixedly connected with the frame 1. The rollers 2 are supported by a fixed guide 11, forming part of the said conveyor, which may be of any form and therefore has not been shown. Frame 1 comprises two uprights 4 and 5, the inner sides of which serve as guide railsfor guide wheels 7 of a sub frame 8. Frame 8 is supported by a fixed guide 10 by means of a roller 9. When frame 1 is moved by the conveyor (not shown) in the direction of arrow A and guide 10 tilts downwards relative to guide 11 frame 8 will shift downwards in the frame 1. A pair of rods 13 are mounted on frame 8 by means 'of a pair of pivot connections 12. About each of these rods a sleeve 14 is present, which sleeves can shift relative to the related rod 13 in their longitudinal direction. Rods I3 hear at their lower sides claws of shafts 1o. (Vide also FIGS. 5, 6 and 7 Furthermore, a central support 17 is mounted on the sub frame 8 by means of crossbeams 18 which are stationarily connected with said frame 8 (vide also FIGS. 3 and 4). Support 17 consequently is a vertically movable member. It has on the outside a square crosssection and is hollow. A pressure member 19 is guided in support 17. At' 18' a tension spring 20 is mounted to support 17, said spring 20 being at its lower side connected with two links 21 (FIG. 4). Support 17 further bears a pair of double levers 23 by'means of pivot connections 22, said levers having at their upper sides a flat hook portion 24 to the end of which the links 21 are connected. The hook portions 24 can cooperate with a roller 25 which by means of a support 26 is rotatably mounted but for the rest is not movable on a sub frame 27, which itself has stationarily been provided on frame 1..Sub frame 27 bears guides having an outer guide portion 28 and an inner guide portion .29, each combination 28, 29 serving for guiding one chickenfs leg to hook said leg into a claw 15 when suspending the chicken. For clearitys sake the means connecting 29 to 27 for supporting 29 has not been shown in the drawings. The double levers 23 at their lower sides bear retaining members 30 (FIGS. 3 and 4). Said retaining members are shaped such that when they are positioned above a claw 15 (shown in interrupted lines in FIG. 3) the joint of a chickens leg suspended in claw 15 is well retained. This position in which the joint is well retained is warranted by an abutment 31, which is fixedly connected to the double lever 23 and can engage the side of a sleeve 14. For causing the two sleeves 14 to move symmetrically relative to the centre plane of the central support 17 links 32 are provided, which on the one hand are connected with rod 13 by means of a pivot connection 32 and on the other hand are rotatably connected with each other by means of a pin 32", which is slidably mounted in a guide 33 provided on the support 17.

As appears more specifically from FIGS. 8 and 9 the central support 17 has a slot 34, through which an arm 35 protrudes, said arm being fixedly connected to rod 19. Said arm bears, by means of a shaft 36, a pawl hook 37, which is retained in the position shown in FIG. 8 by means of a recess 38, engaging a retaining member 39 which is mounted on support 17. Pawlhook 37 further has a hook 40 at its lower side, which hook can cooperate with a toothed rack 41 provided on support 17. Pawlhook 37 further bears an arm 42 supporting a control member 43.

Rods 13 (vide FIGS. and 6) are provided with supporting arms 44, which protrude through slots 45 in the sleeves 14 and each bear a freely rotatable roller 46. Sleeves 14 lean on the shafts 44 by means of the upper limitation of the slots 45. Consequently they can move up and down along the height of the slots 45 relative to the rods, by which they can come from the position shown in FIG. 5 into that of FIG. 6, which causes release and tilt of the claws 15, because the ends 14 of the sleeves no longer prevent the right hand supporting planes of the claws thereof from rotating counter clockwise about shafts 16.

The rollers 46 can cooperate with guides 47 (vide FIG. 1), which are fixedly connected with frame I. Said guides 47 in their upper portions converge downwards whereas their lower portions are mutually parallel. Furthermore, said guides 47 bear upper and lower stops 48 and 49 respectively, which can cooperate with abutment members 50, each connected to a sleeve 14. In the position, in which the abutment member 50 is adjacent stop 48 (FIG. 2) rods 13 have, relative to sleeves 14, been shifted upwards and the rods and the claws are in the position of FIG. 5. When, on the other hand the abutment member 50 is adjacent stop 49 and rod 13 has been shifted downwards relative to sleeve 14, claw 15 is swung downwards, as is shown in FIG. 6.

In the position shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 a chicken has to be suspended by its knee-joints into claws 15 by hand or by an automatic means which has not been shown and does not form part of the invention. Frame 1 is moved to the right along guide 11 in FIG. 1, so that at the beginning of the descending portion of the guide 10 the sub frame 8 starts to descend. By this levers 23 move downwards so that the flat hook portions 24 thereof move downwards relative to roller 25. By this spring pulls by means of the links 21 the levers 23 from the position shown in drawn lines in FIG. 3 into the position shown in the same figure in interrupted lines, so that the retaining members 30 retain said knee-joints in the claws 15. When guide 10 descends farther, so that frame 8 shifts downwards relative to frame 1, rollers 46 cooperate with the converging portions of guides 47, so that sleeves 14 with rods 13 swing inwards until they reach the position of FIG. 4. A further descend of guide 10 thereupon sees to it that frame 8 can move downwards even farther, with which, however, no further swinging movement of rods 13 or sleeves 14 takes place, because guides 47 then are mutually parallel.

Further particulars of the bag retaining member 78 are shown in FIGS. 11 and 12. The bag retaining member has a supporting frame 79 that is mounted on a frame 80, which can'vertically move up and down, and by means of guide rollers 81 is guided by uprights 4 and 5. Frame 80 bears in a supporting member 82 a shaft 83 for a roller 84 which can cooperate with a fixed guide 85. Said guide controls the up and down movement of frame 79.

Furthermore frame 79 comprises a slidably mounted rod 86, which can slide in longitudinal direction in sleeve 87 and on its end a shaft 88 is mounted supporting a freely rotatable roller 89. Said roller 89 can cooperate with a fixed guide 90. Furthermore a spring 91 is mounted which normally keeps rod 86 in the position shown in FIG. 11. The position of FIG. 12 is reached by means of the shape of guide 90, as shown in FIG. 12. On the end of rod 86 a pivot 92 is mounted on which a pair of arms 93 is attached, which on the one hand by means of slide members 93' can slide in slots 94 which are provided in plate 95 which is fixedly connected with frame 78. The outer sides of arms 93 can be brought from the position of FIG. 12 in that of FIG. 11, when rod 86 which is under the influence of spring 91 is moved to the right. When therewith in a way known in itselfa bag is provided on the outer sides of arms 93 to the left of pivot 92 on the one hand and on a stationary support member 96 on the other hand said bag is tightened in its open position, in a way known in itself and not unusual in this field of technique.

The working of the apparatus furthermore is so that after the chicken has been introduced into the sleeve, which is formed by the members 64 and 65, the bag retaining member 78 with the bag tightened thereon moves upwards around sleeve 64,65. Thereupon guides 10 and have a downwardly sloping shape so that frames 8 and 79 move substantially parallel, frame 51, however, maintaining the same height position, because guide ll does not descend. By this the chicken arrives at the bag.

By reason of the simultaneous downward movement of the object and the bag, starting from a position in which the bottom of the bag is adjacent the lower side of the sleeve 64, 65 and the lower side of the object is also near to the lower side of said sleeve, scratching or tearing of the bag as well as pulling it from its support are avoided. Further the possibility of air enclosures near the bottom of the bag is greatly reduced.

In FIG. 13 the time relation of the control means used in the described embodiment is shown. Because the same references have been used as in the other figures FIG. 13 is considered to need no further elucidation.

What is claimed is:

1. A device for packing objects, comprising a sleeve, a supporting means for a bag, said supporting means having an inner free space that is larger than the outer contour of said sleeve and being provided with members for retaining a bag independently of said sleeve, first control means for moving said supporting means from a position in which it is below said sleeve into a position in which it surrounds, with unsealed clearance, at least the lower portion of said sleeve and a bag supported thereby will have its bottom closely adjacent the lower end of said sleeve, and vice versa, a pushing means movably mounted for pushing objects through said sleeve, and second control means connected with the pushing means for moving it from a first position outside said sleeve into a second position in which it protrudes into said sleeve.

2. A device according to claim 1, in which the first 84,85 and second 9,10 control means are adapted to move simultaneously the said pushing means 19 and the said supporting means 78 downwards.

3. A device according to claim 1, in'which said first sleeve 64,65 and said supporting means 78 are mounted on a frame 1 supported by a conveyor means 2 adapted to move along a predetermined track 11 and in which said control means consists of a guide 85 stationarily mounted along said track 11 and a roller 84 bearing on said guide, which roller is connected to said supporting means 78.

4. A device according to claim 3, wherein the said second control means 9,10 consists in a further guide stationarily mounted along said track and a roller 9 bearing said pushing means 19.

r 5. A device according to claim 4, in which said pushing means 19 is supported by a vertically movable tween said pushing means 19 and said vertically movable member 17 for immobilizing said pushing means 19 with respect to said further member 17, the device being further provided with a third control means 76 to unlock said locking means, further locking means 41,40 being provided for preventing the said pushing means 19 from moving upwards with respect to said further member 17.

6. A device according to claim 1, in which said supporting means contains two pivotally mounted members 93 having an arcuate outer shape, a third outerly arcuate shaped member 96 and a control means 92,93,93,94,86,89,90 for pivoting said pivotally mounted members 93.

7. A device according to claim 6, in which said control meanscontains a longitudinal shiftable rod 86 supporting a pivot for said pivotally mounted members 93, a guide 90, a roller 89 connected to said rod and adapted to cooperate with said guide 90 and guide means 94,93 for controlling the pivot movement of said pivotally mounted members.

8. A device according to claim 6, in which a counter member is present opposite the outer side of said pivotally mounted members 93 and adapted to clamp and retain a bag between it and the said members 93. 

1. A device for packing objects, comprising a sleeve, a supporting means for a bag, said supporting means having an inner free space that is larger than the outer contour of said sleeve and being provided with members for retaining a bag independently of said sleeve, first control means for moving said supporting means from a position in which it is below said sleeve into a position in which it surrounds, with unsealed clearance, at least the lower portion of said sleeve and a bag supported thereby will have its bottom closely adjacent the lower end of said sleeve, and vice versa, a pushing means movably mounted for pushing objects through said sleeve, and second control means connected with the pushing means for moving it from a first position outside said sleeve into a second position in which it protrudes into said sleeve.
 2. A device according to claim 1, in which the first 84,85 and second 9,10 control means are adapted to move simultaneously the said pushing means 19 and the said supporting means 78 downwards.
 3. A device according to claim 1, in which said first sleeve 64, 65 and said supporting means 78 are mounted on a frame 1 supported by a conveyor means 2 adapted to move along a predetermined track 11 and in which said control means consists of a guide 85 stationarily mounted along said track 11 and a roller 84 bearing on said guide, which roller is connected to said supporting means
 78. 4. A device according to claim 3, wherein the said second control means 9,10 consists in a further guide 10 stationarily mounted along said track and a roller 9 bearing said pushing means
 19. 5. A device according to claim 4, in which said pushing means 19 is supported by a vertically movable member 17 and is vertically slidable with respect to said vertically movable member 17, which device further contains a locking means 39, 37, 38 working between said pushing means 19 and said vertically movable member 17 for imMobilizing said pushing means 19 with respect to said further member 17, the device being further provided with a third control means 76 to unlock said locking means, further locking means 41,40 being provided for preventing the said pushing means 19 from moving upwards with respect to said further member
 17. 6. A device according to claim 1, in which said supporting means contains two pivotally mounted members 93 having an arcuate outer shape, a third outerly arcuate shaped member 96 and a control means 92,93,93'',94,86,89,90 for pivoting said pivotally mounted members
 93. 7. A device according to claim 6, in which said control means contains a longitudinal shiftable rod 86 supporting a pivot for said pivotally mounted members 93, a guide 90, a roller 89 connected to said rod and adapted to cooperate with said guide 90 and guide means 94,93'' for controlling the pivot movement of said pivotally mounted members.
 8. A device according to claim 6, in which a counter member 95 is present opposite the outer side of said pivotally mounted members 93 and adapted to clamp and retain a bag between it and the said members
 93. 